Vegan Sausage & Caramelized Onion Pizza

posted by Melissa HugginsNovember 28, 20150 comments

Last week, I posted a Hawaiian Pizza that I made on our usual Friday pizza night. Along with that pizza, I made this Vegan Sausage & Caramelized Onion Pizza, and I promised that I would post this one, too. We usually have a classic pizza every Friday, but Nick thought we should branch out a little. I’m so happy we did, becuase this pizza was delicious!

I love caramelized onions! They have a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture, and a sweet, rich flavor that will enhance just about any recipe. They do take a long time to cook, but I made a simpler version for this pizza. If you have the time, you can slow-cook them to get the deeper caramelized flavor. These onions freeze well, so you can prepare them ahead of time for your recipes.

These delicious onions, pair perfectly with the vegan Field Roast Smoked Apple Sage Sausages, but you can use any brand or flavor of vegan sausages. It will be just as tasty. I love the combination of tender sweet onions, along with the savory & sweet flavor from vegan sausage. The sausage also adds the perfect balance of saltiness and crunchiness. This pizza wouldn’t be complete without the rich, creamy, cashew cheese & fresh-cut basil! These flavors will make your taste buds dance!

This is not the traditional slow-cooked caramelized onion method, but these onions still taste delicious. This will save you lots of time in the kitchen. Heat olive oil, in a pan over medium-high heat. Add onions, and sauté until browned, about 15 minutes, stirring often. Add salt. Once the onions are browned, add 1/4 cup vegetable broth, and continue to sauté on medium heat for another 15 minutes. Be careful not to get the pan to hot, or it could burn the onions. Lower temperature slightly, if needed. Keep stirring.

Cashew Cheese Method:

Rinse cashews and discard water. Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. (about 2-3 minutes) Scrape down sides a couple of times. You can add a bit more water, if needed. Add a pinch more salt if needed.

Method For Crust:

Preheat oven to 500 degrees (yup, as hot as it goes).

Pour the water in a small pot. Heat to roughly 105-110 degrees ( just enough to barely notice it’s hot to the touch, usually just a couple of minutes on medium heat). Once heated, add the 2 tbsp of sugar and the yeast packet and let sit for 7-10 minutes (if you don’t see bubbling/foam in 10 minutes, try again with a different package of yeast and make sure the water is not too hot).

In a separate bowl add the flour, salt and garlic powder. Mix well. Once the yeast mixture is ready, add it to the bowl along with the olive oil. Mix until all ingredients are well combined. If your dough is too sticky, you can add a couple tbsp of flour so, it is easy to handle. Ball it up in the bowl and cover with a wet napkin or hand towel for 30-40 minutes.

While the dough is rising, you can make the cashew cheese and caramelized onions or you could prepare these ahead of time and pop them in the fridge.

Now, get your pizza tray or large cutting board ready. You’ll need to place a large piece of parchment paper on top of it. Dust the parchment paper with flour, so you can spread your dough easily.

Once the dough has risen, spread it across the parchment paper into a round pizza shape. Spread the dough pretty thin because it will rise. Add the sauce and spread it evenly across with a spoon.

Now, add the caramelized onions evenly over the pizza, and follow with the crumbled sausage.

Place the pizza in the oven by grabbing your parchment paper by one end and sliding onto the oven racks. ( we use a pizza tray to move the pizza to the racks) The pizza cooks faster and it’s crispier when cooked on the parchment paper. If you prefer, you can cook on the tray, but let it cook on the racks for the last 5 minutes, so it gets crispy and remember to line tray with parchment.

Bake for 10-15 minutes (until the crust is at a desired crispness) Careful not to burn it…at 500 degrees, this pizza cooks fast.

After you pizza is fully cooked, add as much cashew cheese that your heart desires. Enjoy!

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Welcome to Vegan Huggs, a friendly and inspirational blog, about living a healthier and cruelty- free lifestyle. I hope I can encourage my readers, to eat more plant based foods and live a more natural and chemical free life.
-Melissa xoxo

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